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Monthly Archives: March 2010

Christine is getting married and the festivities have begun! Her party was wonderfully planned by the maid of honor, Kim. Kim gave all of us bridesmaids (pictured above) our tasks for the day. When you only have to be responsible for a fraction of the shower, it is not nearly as overwhelming.

My fraction of the shower was to make the sangria. And if I say so myself, it was well done. I used The Pioneer Woman’s recipe from her cookbook. Christine’s Great Aunt Jeanette brought me a piece of paper and a pen and told me, “Jot down these ingredients!” I’ve made the recipe a few times now and it has been a pretty big hit each time. I noticed several people popping the lid off to scoop fruit out and sticking their cups under for more.

The rest of the food spread was quite impressive, and sadly I failed to get a picture of it. We had sandwich fixings, salads, sausage balls, spinach dip and fruit trays. We ate. It was delightful. Christine got lots of wonderful gifts and it was really neat to see all her relatives and friends there to celebrate her.

Christine has really grown up into a real woman in the past few years. She is a very hardworking, caring, and entertaining girl. At her shower we got the chance to meet those people that have known her from a childhood, those who have known her from high school, those that have known her from college, those from work and those people that just know her from life. It was fascinating to see the many people from the many areas of her life. The first festivity was fabulous and I can’t wait for everything else. Congratulations Christine! We love you!

Friday we celebrated JMO’s 25th birthday with a trip to Star Pizza with his family. JMO loves pizza, and the rest of us enjoy it. As always it was good to spend time with the Oswalts. They are fun people who truly enjoy the company of the their family. The Oswalt Men got one side of the table, Trent and JMO continually elbowed each other and a good time was had by all. It is hard to believe that JMO is now twenty-five. Twenty-four was eventful, I can’t wait to see what twenty-five holds.

Last month I started working part time for my old job. This is the job that pushed me to make a change in my life. This is the job that made me realize I didn’t want to sit in a cubicle/room of computers/coworkers all day. I am working here for the duration of their busy season. I’ve said goodbye to my weekday afternoons, but I’ve said hello to quite a few positives.

Before I came back, I had begun seeing my previous life in an office through rose colored glasses. I love the kids, but I remembered the world where I didn’t have to give someone permission to use the restroom and I didn’t have to wait half a day to use it myself. I was remembering the free food and tickets to events very fondly. Coming back to the financial communication world has truly giving me an appreciation of the new path I’ve chosen. My decision to change directions feels like the best decision I have ever made. In the financial world, no one hugs you when a project is done. I used to get tickets to sporting events, but now I get pictures of stick figures with the words “You are the bestest” written in every color crayon. Having the stark contrast of elementary by day and office by night has truly allowed me to put my past life and my future life side by side. The future is looking bright. Financial communications are essential to our economy, but they are not to my life. The urgency of deadlines and the high demands of clients are no longer the only way to earn an income. Missing a deadline was devastating, I haven’t missed one yet since I’ve been back, but my perspective on the end of the world has changed. If something doesn’t make it, it isn’t a great thing, but adjustments can be made and you can move forward. Kids make me laugh. Lawyers do not. Accountants do not. Morning warm ups, book talks, recess, and the science fair will always beat out work orders, filing deadlines, SEC regulations, and unwanted overtime.

Extra money and extra time spent with a few old friends will also be added to the list of positives. So, I may not have any pictures to post of anything cool I’ve done lately. I haven’t done much outside of my double life, but I’ve learned a lot about choosing your own happiness. There is always a choice. Nothing has to be done the way I am currently doing it. The chance to look at the old choice versus the new choice doesn‚Äôt come around everyday. I am grateful that the opportunity to see my past and future together, side by side, came around. The future looks good, and when I come out the other side I hope to go back to spending some more time with the people I love and adore.